The Chevrolet brand is NHRA drag racing’s top manufacturer for 21st time in history….
For the second year in a row and 21st time in National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) history, Chevrolet is drag racing’s leading manufacturer. The Bowtie Brand was awarded the NHRA Manufacturers Cup during the NHRA’s annual awards banquet following the season’s final event at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona over the weekend.
Chevrolet was far and away the most successful manufacturer in the 2015 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series with 29 national event victories in three different Eliminator categories. The Manufacturers Cup goes to the automobile manufacturer whose current-year model earns the most points for qualifying and category victories at NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series national and Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series regional and divisional events.
Chevrolet first won the NHRA Manufacturers Cup in 1966. No other manufacturer has won it more times.
“Chevrolet is honored to win the NHRA Manufacturers Cup for the 21st time,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. “This recognition is the result of the hard work and dedication by our Chevrolet Camaro SS teams in the Pro Stock and Funny Car classes, as well as our COPO Camaro teams and drivers in the Sportsman classes. It takes a collective effort to earn this award, and we thank the drivers, crew and all who made this possible.”
Erica Enders Stevens spearheaded Chevy’s 2015 Manufactures Cup winning season by winning 9X in Pro Stock
The Chevrolet Camaro SS was the car to have in the Pro Stock category with wins in 22 of 24 events, with the charge led by now two-time Pro Stock World Champion Erica Enders. The Elite Motorsports star set an NHRA record for single-season event wins by a female driver with nine.
Seven Team Chevy Pro Stock drivers contributed victories: Enders, Greg Anderson (four), Chris McGaha (three), Jason Line and Larry Morgan (two each), and Drew Skillman and Rodger Brogdon (one each).
The first year of Chevrolet’s partnership with John Force Racing also proved fruitful with four Funny Car victories – two by team principal and 16-time Funny Car World Champion John Force and two by teammate Robert Hight. Both drove a Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car.
Chevrolet’s COPO Camaro also found Victory Circle three times in the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series with Dan Fletcher, Jeff Strickland and Ryan Montford all winning Sportsman class races in their COPO Camaros.
“Our involvement in NHRA is very important,” Campbell added. “This gives us the ability to race and showcase our line of Performance Parts and Accessories to a wide range of customers through competition and our trackside marketing and displays. It’s great to see the number of fans who visit and inquire about a variety of Chevrolet products. We are eager to build on that for the 2016 season.”
About Chevrolet:
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 115 countries and selling around 4.8 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value.
More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.
DragRaceCanada file photos by Bruce Biegler
